Friends Celebrate 45 Year of Booksales and a Century and a Half of Support

In the summer of 1981, a group of volunteers gathered to plan a fund-raising event to benefit the East Providence Public Library. The new group was the outgrowth of an organization formed in 1881 to start a public library in the city.Library staff replaced books on an ongoing basis, creating a supply for resale. Taking advantage of the East Providence Arts Fest, held on the library lawn, the newly-formed Friends of the Library began a tradition of book sales which has continued and grown over the last four and a half decades,

Starting as a small sale, with books displayed on a few tables, the Book Sale has grown to a semi-annual event held in the Spring and the Fall at Weaver Library, offering thousands of books. Unlike most library book sales, where books are arranged with spines facing up on long tables, East Providence is fortunate to be able to display books on moveable book cases which are arranged to resemble a book store. Several times each week, throughout the year, volunteer Friends of the Library meet in the basement of Weaver Library. They sort through books donated by community members and ones no longer needed by the library, A special room stores twelve single-sided and six double-sided wooden bookcases on wheels. More than a decade ago, City maintenance staff custom-built the bookcases to fit in the room. Bookcases are labeled and designated for specific categories. Over the past decade, the categories have grown from two (fiction and non-fiction) to more than 50, to make it easier for book sale patrons to find books that interest them. When book sale time arrives, Friends volunteers wheel the filled bookcases to the elevator and bring them up to the Program Room, where they are arranged for the sale. In recent years, the Friends have expanded the sale to include the adjacent Conference Room, to display additional children’s, young adult and non-fiction books. Special and rare books are now offered as part of the Collectors’ Corner. Expansion of the book sale has increased funding for the Friends of the Library. This, in turn, has enabled the Friends to provide more support for library programs and projects, including museum passes.

If you have not attended the Spring Book Sale before, we welcome you to attend our 45^th Book Sale Year Celebration. The Friends of the East Providence Public Library will sponsor the Spring Book Sale on Friday, April 10 and Saturday, April 11 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Sunday, April 12 from 1-5 p.m. A Members Only Preview Sale for Friends of the East Providence Public Library will be held on Thursday, April 9 from 6:00 to 8:00 p.m. Individuals can join for a $10 per person annual membership fee, payable in advance or at the door. Bookshelves are continuously restocked throughout the weekend, s